Here is your first major injury of the new season.
UNC freshman RB Gio Bernard fell prey to the dreaded torn ACL in his knee and will be out for the season. Bernard will have surgery to repair the torn ligament and obviously take a redshirt. What remains to be seen is whether this is a huge deal or not. The take from most people is “huge deal.” Bernard came in highly rated with four stars from Scout.com and ranked as the #13 RB in the class of 2010. In short, Bernard is a talented player which at least means he may have been able to contribute. The other factor though is depth. After Shaun Draughn and Ryan Houston there is not much there. A.J. Blue has been spending all of his time with the QBs while still recovering from the complete destruction of his knee last season. Jamal Womble would be in the mix but his academics caused him to leave the team earlier this year. At the time, there was hope he might return at some point but that probably will not be this season.
Needless to say, the offensive line as well as both Draughn and Houston need to stay healthy to keep an effective running game going. Those aspects, more than anything else, is going to help T.J Yates(or Bryan Renner) and the passing game the most.
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I hate to hear this and anytime someone tears their ACL, I wince. It’s a nasty injury and an easy one to experience, as the ACL is one of the most “underpowered” ligaments in your body.
At UNC, I tore mine just knocking around playing football with my roommates. Two surgeries later, the knee is still junk.
So, if we’re that thin at RB, what are the chances someone can switch positions and do some good? Are there any other options?
Yep, not many people to fill that space, J. White is big enough but needs to keep his hands on the ball, he’s an option. Maybe we could go all Fridge and have Hurst carry the ball every now and then.
It’s definitely a big deal for Gio. I feel sick for the guy. I did the same when I was UNC, but I didn’t get quite as much press! Hopefully he spends the year wisely and comes out physically stronger and well adapted to the program. Sometimes these big time guys get the healthy redshirt anyway, so maybe he was a year away anyway IF the top 2 remain healthy. Moot point now. Between White, Boyd, and Little? with those end arounds, there will be plenty of guys running from all over the field. I like bringing back the “fridge”. I’d like to see anyone try and tackle any of our defensive linemen. Quinn, Tydreke…man, any of them.